


A Quarter After One, I'm A Little Drunk

by thesoundofnat



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Iron Man - All Media Types
Genre: Alcohol, Confessions, Drunken Confessions, Drunkenness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-08
Updated: 2017-08-08
Packaged: 2018-12-12 22:46:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,033
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11746755
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thesoundofnat/pseuds/thesoundofnat
Summary: “You keep asking about the past,” he said a few seconds later as he opened his eyes again. “We’re getting old, Rhodes, but surely you’re not getting nostalgic?”“You didn’t answer the question.”(Or, Tony and Rhodey get drunk and ask each other questions.)





	A Quarter After One, I'm A Little Drunk

“How do you accidentally set a shirt on fire?!?”

Tony scowled. “You… use fire close to it? It’s made out of flammable material…” He trailed off, most likely due to the expression on Rhodey’s face.

“I  _know_ how a shirt catches fire,” he snapped, his hand already at his temple as if it would help matters. “I just want to know  _why_ you did it.”

Tony’s eyes narrowed in that way that told Rhodey he was trying very hard to focus his gaze on him. Oh, he was far from sober, but then again, so was Rhodey.

“That was five years ago,” Tony eventually deadpanned. “How am I supposed to remember? You asked for a drunken mistake. Not the reason behind it.”

Rhodey burst out laughing. “Okay, okay, I did ask for that. I give. Your turn.”

Tony grinned, as if he’d won a great victory. “Okay, let’s see. Remember when your washing machine broke last year?”

Rhodey nodded, though he had a feeling he wouldn’t like this question.

“That wasn’t a natural malfunction, was it?”

“No.”

“So what happened?”

Rhodey sighed, his body slumping as he reached for his glass; not to drink, but just to hold. “I kicked it.”

“You  _kicked_ it?”

“Uh huh.”

“But  _why_?”

Rhodey shrugged. “I was angry that day. Very angry. I had no way of letting anything out, and I was gonna do my laundry and it was just so loud and complicated that day.”

“So you decided to kill it.”

“Something like that.”

Tony barked out a laugh. “Oh, man. What were you even angry about?”

“Nuh uh. No more questions. My turn.”

Rhodey had no idea how this game had started. They had surely been playing truth or dare a minute ago, but it had evolved into whatever this was; where they only asked questions and got honest replies. This wasn’t how he’d imagined he would spend his Saturday night, but it had been way too long since it had just been him and Tony, so he hadn’t protested when his friend had suddenly appeared at his doorstep, looking lonely and desperate and so goddamn happy to see him. Rhodey knew Tony had that effect on him as well.

Tony was leaning back where he was sitting on the floor, nearly toppling over since only half his back was resting against the couch. “Go ahead.”

“What’s your biggest regret from college?”

Tony had visibly not been expecting the question, and his eyebrows met his hairline. “From college? Woah, okay, let me have a flashback.” He closed his eyes, his hands in the air as if that would allow him to pause time and rewind. Rhodey took a sip of his drink while he waited, his gaze never leaving Tony’s form.

“You keep asking about the past,” he said a few seconds later as he opened his eyes again. “We’re getting old, Rhodes, but surely you’re not getting nostalgic?”

“You didn’t answer the question.”

Tony’s lips quirked, and Rhodey wasn’t sure what to make of it. “My biggest regret was probably not having let myself be the kid I actually was. At least at times.”

“I told you you would.”

Tony averted his eyes. “You did. I didn’t believe you back then. I thought I was too smart to be young.” He gulped down the rest of his beverage in one go. “‘Course, I started drinking and partying afterwards and told myself I was making up for lost time. Bullshit.”

“Tones.”

Tony shook his head. “Sorry. But there you have it. My biggest regret.”

“From college.”

“In general. It just happens to have taken place during college.”

They were silent for a moment, unsure of what direction to take this in now. Rhodey could ask more questions and let Tony vent, or they could pretend he hadn’t said anything. Let this night end on a positive note. Rhodey wanted both options so badly that he was starting to wonder if he could somehow combine them.

But he knew he couldn’t.

“You wanna hear my biggest regret from college?” he said instead, his voice loud and sudden as it sliced through the quiet.

Tony met his eyes curiously. “Sure.”

“The fact that I didn’t allow myself to date properly. I’m not just saying this because I’m still unmarried at this age or whatnot, but I entered college thinking I had to sleep around rather than form closer bonds. I regret it, because after graduation I was just lost. I had no idea how love or relationships worked.”

“Sounds like me.”

Rhodey grinned. “We’re both messes, huh?”

“We’re doing all right today, if I do say so myself. Don’t you think?”

“Could be worse.”

“It  _has_ been worse.”

“True.” Rhodey raised his glass. “To us.”

Tony grabbed an unopened beer bottle and clinked it against Rhodey’s glass. “To growth.”

Rhodey drank and nearly choked when he scrambled to say, “Maybe you shouldn’t open it,” when Tony moved to do just so.

Tony frowned. “Why?”

“Because I’m sure we can barely stand up with how much we’ve had to drink already.”

His theory turned out to be correct, and Rhodey led Tony to the bedroom once they’d managed to get to their feet after several attempts. He knew his friend hated his couch, and was therefore not going to subject his back to it - nor his own - for a few hours of sleep. They’d shared a bed countless of times before, and while it had been a few years since he saw nothing strange about doing it again.

They somehow shed most of their clothes and found themselves beneath the covers, but Rhodey felt too restless to settle down, so he chanced one last question before sleep found Tony. “What’s your biggest achievement from college? If you had to pick.”

Tony was silent for so long that Rhodey assumed he’d passed out instantly and was a bit startled when he suddenly said, “You.”

“Pardon?”

“You were my biggest achievement. Becoming your friend and somehow keeping you for all these years.”

Had Rhodey been quick to tear up he was sure he would be sobbing right now, but instead he just said, “Ditto, Tones,” and left it at that.

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on [tumblr](http://thesoundofnat.tumblr.com/)


End file.
